FOUR MORE WEST NILE DISTRICTS TO BENEFIT UNDER UCMID

Obiga Kania the Minister of State for Urban Development explaining the new developments under the USMID project.

By Dramadri Federick
Arua City

Ministry of Lands Housing and Urban development has added four more west Nile local governments to benefit in the newly branded Urban Development Project.

The project formerly known to be Uganda Support to Municipal Infrastructural Development (USMID) has now been rebranded as Uganda Cities and Municipalities Infrastructure Development (UCMID) in order to accommodate the newly created regional cities and Municipalities that are overwhelmed by the impacts of the self-settled refugees and asylum seekers.

The Ministry says it has negotiated 2-trillion shillings with the World Bank as they increased the number of benefiting local governments to improve on the infrastructural development in the country’s urban areas.

According to the new list from the ministry the two districts of Arua and Moyo in west Nile qualify automatically under the UCMID due to the impacts of Refugee activities including the two municipalities of Nebbi and Koboko who join the 33 benefiting local governments across the country.

Sharing his excitement after receiving the news, Alfred Okuonzi the Arua district Chairman says “priorities in the district will focus on key infrastructures including construction of resource center, a stadium, markets and tarmacking of roads within the district headquarters.”

“we have refugees in Eruba, Ajono, and several other places who have crowded institutions of learning including Nile High, St. Augustine, Okufura and Ushindi Secondary schools affecting teaching and learning and therefore it would have been a real disservice if we were not considered, now we are considered am very happy about it,” Okuonzi explained thankfully.

Currently seven local governments in west Nile region including Obongi, Terego, Madi-Okollo, Adjumani, Moyo, Yumbe, and Arua city are benefiting from the USMID.
Obiga Kania the Minister of State for Urban development warns districts that have not completed projects to hurry or forget of benefiting in the new program.

“We were able to include Koboko municipality, Nebbi municipality, Arua district and we were also able to include back Moyo. However, those districts which have not finished their projects if you want to continue benefiting in the next Project complete this within the possible time if not, there’s no way we are going to include you whether a minister comes from your district.” Kania warned

For 10 years, the World Bank, through a $360m USMID project, which ended in June last year, supported urban infrastructure development across 33 districts